Don't Try To Fool Me
by yo grey
Summary: AU. Will Meredith be able to keep the secret about her very determined one night stand to her overprotective brother who's finally coming back home, with the three of them in the same workplace where gossips spread faster than wildfire?
1. Chapter 1: Homecoming

AN: First GA fic. Not entirely sure where this is heading so, the rest, we just have to take on fate. All spelling and grammar mistakes are solely on me, unfortunately.

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><p>Meredith slowly opened her eyes and squinted at the ray of light falling on her face. She took a moment to register her surroundings after her vision had adapted to the light.<p>

_Good, I'm in my room._ _Should've pulled down the blinds._

Her gaze fell to the floor and realised that there's a man who's totally naked, for not the blanket covering his ass, lying on his stomach on the floor. It took her a proper minute to review how she got home last night.

_Went to the bar with Cristina. Had tequila shots. And then…shit. _Mark!_ I'm screwed._

She grabbed the lavender duvet from him and dropped a pillow on his pretty cute butt which woke him up. The man squinted at the brightness of the room and felt his head throb slightly in pain as he watched her tiptoe away. "Why don't you go back here and we'll pick up where we left off?" He offered, giving her a big grin.

Meredith froze in her tracks and turned back to him with an awkward smile, "You have to go. Seriously, I'm late." Any attempts of trying to tuck the stray hair falling on her face went in vain.

"So…" He stood up, looking around. "You actually live here?"

"No." She answered in a heartbeat, almost like an impulse, but quickly took it back with indecisiveness. "Yes, kind of."

He zipped up his pants and buckled his belt. "Oh. It's nice. A little dusty. A lot. But it's nice." He looked at her, her grey eyes accentuated by the daylight spilling from the half-opened blinds.

She emptily stared at him, like she was waiting for something to happen or for him to just get the hell out of her house so she can get a shower and go out on the road.

"So, how do you _kind of _live here?"

"I moved two weeks ago from Boston. It was my mother's house."

"Oh, I'm sorry."

She tucked her hair behind her ear and looked at him with wide eyes, "For what?"

"You said 'was'."

"Oh! My mother's not dead, she's…she's—" She rambled, still keeping the duvet around her. "You know, we don't have to do the thing."

"We can do anything you want." He was all teeth and all that dreamy sex appeal that was just radiating from his body.

"No, the thing: exchange the details, pretend we care. Look, I'm gonna go in there," she pointed at the door behind her, "and take a shower, and when I go back down here, you won't be here. So,"

Oh, the grin gets wider. "I'd love to join you."

"I don't really think…uhm. Listen," There was a pause as she waited for him to tell her his name but he only looked at her with a stupid smile on his face, his mouth slightly agape while he fiddled with the collar of his shirt. "Uhm…"

"Derek." He extended his hand and she gladly took it, now smiling widely too.

"Right. So uhm, I've got to take a shower and when I get back out, you're not going to be here, so goodbye. It was really nice meeting you, uhm, Derek." Her giggle was all he heard as she ran away into the shower room, leaving him to find his way out.

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><p>"Ah, the rebellious sister." Mark's voice boomed in front of her and she looked up from her phone to see him smiling from ear to ear while pushing an airport trolley full of baggage walking towards her.<p>

She walked up to him and allowed him to pull her into a hug. After a moment, they broke apart and he ruffled her hair which caused her to glare at him as they found their way into the airport parking lot. She quickly unlocked the trunk and let him put all his things in there.

"So how are you?" He said after they have settled inside the car, putting on their seatbelts.

"I'm not the one who just came home from New York." She countered, dodging the question she only knows to answer with two words: 'I'm fine'.

"You're being really grumpy today. Didn't you miss me?"

If she wasn't looking at the road ahead, she'd be rolling her eyes. "You're awfully sure of yourself." _But then again, he wouldn't be Mark if he wasn't._

"C'mon. Even just a little bit?" He smiled, all the obvious joy in his face as if he really has nothing to worry about, no problems, no anything. The kind that only shows when he's around Meredith. The kind she's gotten used to while they were growing up. That's until he moved out 8 years ago.

She really kind of missed him—the playful but overly protective brother who chased away the first guy Meredith planned to sleep with when he caught them making out in her room—but she's too proud to say that. It's the first time she's seen him since she surprised her in New York last year to congratulate him for the end of his residency. And his ego needs to be deflated a little, anyway. Plus, she's really not that kind of person. She's Meredith Grey. She wore nothing but black in high school and had pink hair, she doesn't miss people. But Mark's the exception. He's Mark; without him, she would have been way worse, her childhood completely, utterly ruined. Underneath his ragged and confident exterior, he's self-destructive and self-loathing on almost a pathological level. Vulnerability and protectiveness adds up to that too. "'Kay. Maybe."

"Ah! There it goes!" He exclaimed, his arms open, though not wide enough to interfere with her driving, as if receiving the ball thrown at him at a football match.

"So, you're staying at the house or are you gonna get your own place?" She asked, not bitchily, just plain and simple; Meredith being _Meredith_.

"I think I'm gonna hang around at the house. Chase your current boyfriend away."

She made a sound that could only be interpreted as a grunt. "Are you seriously gonna be all protective again? Seriously?! I'm 27. I'm a grown up. I don't need to be protected and watched over or whatever." She threw a hand up in the air only to land in the steering wheel with a thud.

"Yeah." He laughed, too satisfied to be pissing her off. He missed this. He missed her. Meredith was the only stable thing in his life. Well, except for their mother's constant temper. But he shut Ellis off anyway, so it can be controlled, really. "Fool me. I'm your big brother. You're _just_ 26. March is 6 months away. Ha!"

"Are you seriously gonna be like this the whole time?" Slight annoyance was evident in her voice.

"Like what?!"

"All brotherly and—" She made a low grunt of disgust in her throat.

His voice boomed in laughter that can only be interpreted as 'Yeah, all the freaking time.' Which, in turn, made Meredith roll her eyes after taking a turn on the left.

A minute of silence passed between them before Mark finally broke it, his voice taking a tad bit more seriousness now. "Remember my friend from NY Pres I told you about?"

"Oh, the one who went into neuro, right?"

"Yeah. He decided to go with me too."

"Like, take his fellowship in Seattle, too?"

He nodded. "Yeah."

"Well, I didn't see you load him in the trunk, so where is he?"

"He went earlier. Said he wanted to check out the city and find a place to live in. I offered him a place to stay but he declined. He thinks it'd get in the way of him screwing girls every night."

"I see you still got that reputation." She smirked, memories flooding her all of a sudden; helping each other sneak out on most night and covering up for each other every morning.

"What reputation exactly?" His face was completely puzzled and wondering.

"The _sleep with 'em and leave 'em_ thing you got going since high school."

He chuckled loudly, implying that she's wrong.

"What?"

"I don't. Not anymore, anyway. I met someone." He's too proud, it's shining from his pearly whites.

Meredith glanced at her brother for a brief second, a look of wonderment in her face. "Seriously? Marcus Grey, manwhore extraordinaire, found someone? _Seriously?_"

"That's what she said." He beamed again.

"Isn't that line only applicable when pertaining to sex?" She threw at him but he just sat there, grinning like a fool. "Anyway, so do I get the honour of meeting this woman who managed to tame you?" She asked, still bewildered, but given the fact that she's known him her whole life, Mark Grey is _very much capable_ of loving someone and investing in them as emotionally as everyone else, if possible, maybe more. "Or are you hiding her from me, too?"

He smirked, the image of his girlfriend floating in his brain. "Oh, you'll meet her soon."

In a matter of minutes, she's pulling up in front of their childhood house and Mark got out of the car as Meredith followed, too. "Wow." He sighed, leaning back into the car, taking everything in. "It hasn't changed much since I left."

"No one's been home for a year. I haven't…" She trailed, weighing the moment, deciding whether it's the right time to talk to him about their mum. _He should've been over it already, right? It's been 8 years already since they had that fight._

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><p><strong>*****Flashback*****<strong>

Four days before the end of their vacation which marks the beginning of his internship in New York, Mark slowly trudged off to his mum's office, his heart pounding madly in his chest, scenarios and possible exchange playing out in his head, all at once. _She couldn't tell me what to do. I'm free to make my own decisions. This is my life. Mine. No one else could dictate me or discourage me._

He knocked and slowly opened the door. Ellis Grey was scribbling behind the stack of papers placed neatly on her large oak desk. The skin between her eyebrows in a crease, way too engaged in her paperwork. "Mum?"

She didn't even look up at him as he entered the room. "What is it, Mark? I'm busy."

"I'm going into plastics." He breathed out, his voice loud and clear.

She stopped writing and slowly looked up at him. "Pardon me?"

"I said I'm specialising in plastic surgery." He looked straight into her eyes, unable to feel much, the adrenalin slowly numbing him, circulating in his veins.

"Are you out of your mind?" She all but yelled as she laid her pen down and straightened her face. "How are you supposed to change the face of medicine in plastics?"

"I—" He started but instantly cut off by his mum, rage now discernible in her face.

"What happened to you?" She asked so seriously, getting up on his feet and walking around her table, only to stand in front of him with a hand on her hips.

"Excuse me?" He ask, complete puzzlement in his face.

"I raised you to be extraordinary, Marcus. Why are you wasting your life on such thing? Plastics is practically cosmetology. You know better than that, Mark. You should be specialising in cardio, instead!"

"I'm excellent, mum. Maybe I got in quite a number of troubles back then but my skills are excellent. They're flawless." He said loud, anger obvious in his voice. "And I know plastics is not general surgery or cardio or neuro, but it's life-changing, too. It changes the way people feel about themselves."

"If people want to feel good about themselves, they should hire a shrink!" She all but shouted.

"But I really want to do this, mum." He reasoned out, red in the face, his arms making movements in front of him. "I'm old enough to make decisions for myself. This is _my_ career."

"This argument is over, Mark. You're going into cardio." She slowly made her way back to her seat, making no room for remarks.

"Or what?" He said, challengingly brave. His anger a bit toned-down now as he shifted his weight on his other feet. But his body thumped in a beat, suddenly feeling every pulse.

Ellis stopped in her tracks, turning back to her son. "Or I'll disown you."

"Fine." He said in a heartbeat. "I'm done being told what to do with my life. _My_ life."

She may not have known a lot about her own son, but this she certainly know: Mark does not back out. He does not take anything that he said back; he keeps his word and he sticks to it till the end. "Okay." She said as she sat down on her chair, pulling herself closer to her desk, hands laced together in front of her.

He stared at her for a short moment, "Goodbye, then."

She watched his retreating back out of her office, and quite possibly out of her life. She went back to her paperwork as his even steps carried him upstairs.

Meredith heard it all. She was listening beside the doorway and bolted in front of her mum quickly after Mark left the room. "Mum!" Meredith demanded, worried and confused. "Are you really not gonna stop him? He's leaving!"

Too engrossed in her work, she didn't even look at her furious daughter. "I fed him, clothed him and sent him to school. I did everything I could possibly do."

Meredith stared at her with her mouth slightly agape. _Freaking unbelievable!_

*******End of Flashback*******

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><p>"Mum hasn't been home yet, either." She said softly, watching his face for any kind of reaction as he continued to stare at the house, as if studying every piece of brick, every edge of the each window. But she let it go. Maybe it's too soon.<p>

She cleared her throat in a gesture for him to follow her and walked to the back of the car, unlocking the trunk.

Surveying the contents, he took the smallest suitcase. "Can you take this?"

"God, what do you have inside this? Sentimental cadavers from the East Coast?" She grunted as she moved past him to open the house.

He smirked on her complaints. "Well, I'm glad, not everything has fully changed." He said, putting down his suitcase, taking a swift look around.

"You're taking your old room 'cause I took mum's!" She yelled from the top of the stairs.

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><p>They were moving the last of his things back to his room when her phone buzzed. "Are you staying home tonight?" She asked him, dropping down on a chair, eyes glued on her phone as she typed the last of her text message before sending it.<p>

"I was planning to get a couple of drinks with Shep."

"Well, I'll head out now, I'm meeting Cristina." She beckoned to his things and said, "I'll leave you to this. And maybe dusting off downstairs too. Bye." And then she was out of his room in a flash.

"You better be home by midnight!" He shouted after her.

"I'm 27!"

"26!"


	2. Chapter 2: Enemies? Competitions

**A/N: **I've got exams coming next week so I don't know how much I can write for the next chapter but I already have something in mind. Mark's girlfriend will be named next chapter! So who do you think she is? If you want a clue, they've already had sex on the show! I'd leave you to ponder on that bullshit of a clue. Again, all grammar and spelling mistakes are solely on me, unfortunately. Feedback of any sort would be highly appreciated (NO, REALLY, REVIEWS WILL BE HIGHLY GLORIFIED). Constructive criticisms are appreciated too, as long as they're not rude.

**Disclaimer:** Chill, mate. I ain't claiming any of ABC's shit.

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><p>Stepping into the bar and finally out of the crispy cold September air, Mark shook the droplets of rain out of his leather jacket and searched the room for an overly-moussed hair in the crowd. He shuffled towards the bar and approached the person sitting in the corner alone. "Hey, Shep."<p>

The man turned his head and immediately recognised Mark, a smile creeping up on his face. "Mark."

"So how do you found the city so far?" Mark dropped on the seat beside his friend and looked up at the bartender. "Double scotch, single malt."

"Confounded by all the rain and it's only my first week in town." He said, running a hand through his hair.

"You'd get used to it." He patted him on his back and took a swig of scotch before turning back to him again. "What did you do here, Derek, seriously? Went sight-seeing?"

Derek took a swig of his own and gestured for the bartender to pour him another round. "Found an apartment and bought some stuff." He smirked, "Amongst other things."

"Some sight you saw." Mark laughed and patted him at the back again. "I'm proud of you, man."

"Why do you always assume it's a woman?"

"Because you have that glint in your eyes and they're screaming at me. Known you long enough, man."

Derek laughed shortly.

"So who is she?"

Derek raked his memory in search for her name. "I—" He trailed. "I honestly don't know. I met her at a bar yesterday and went home with her last night. I didn't even get her phone number. Not even her name."

"Not even her name?" Wide-eyed in disbelief, Mark asked a notch louder. It's so not like his best friend to sleep with a woman he just met. Moreover, do one night stands.

Derek only shook his head. Nothing came up._ Maybe it's just a one-night stand and nothing else._

"One night stands… You're growing, Shep." Mark nodded at him, raising his tumbler to his friend and taking a gulp.

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><p>The next morning, the twisted sisters, as Mark liked to call them, came 5 minutes early and made their way to find vacant seats in the auditorium.<p>

"M-Meredith Grey? Y-You're just in time." A man with kind eyes beside Meredith said after she and Cristina sat down. "I-uh… I'm…" He stuttered, looking shyly at Meredith, a stupid smile on his face. "I'm George. George O'Malley." He extended his hand to Meredith who shook it and elbowed Cristina with her other arm secretly, their amused faces put on for him.

"We met at the uh…mixer?" George tried again. "The intern mixer,"

"Oh, yeah. George!" Exclaimed Meredith. Truth is, she barely remembers the guy but the fact that she used him to hide while observing Richard Webber from across the room since Cristina went to get drinks for them. "This is Cristina Yang." She gestured towards her best friend.

George smiled awkwardly, trying to pretend he wasn't already alarmed by the meanness of the woman.

The Asian eyed George keenly for a minute without even trying to hide it. "Surgery?" She asked, roughly.

He nodded. "Y-Yeah, but I'm not an enemy." He smiled again, trying to be friendly. If he gets on this women's good side, he can trail behind them and maybe get some help for when he'd be facing others' wrath.

"You're not an enemy, you're just a competition." She said all too boldly and laid back on her seat just as people in casual clothes under their crispy white lab coats start lining up on the stage.

Richard Webber, the chief of surgery, stepped into the rostrum and cleared his throat, silencing the murmurs and buzzes in the room. "Each of you comes here today, hopeful, wanting in on the game. A month ago, you were in med school being taught by doctors. Today, _you are the doctors_. The seven years you spend here as a surgical resident will be the best and worst of your life. You'll be pushed to the breaking point. Look around you. Say hello to your competition. Many of you will switch into an easier specialty, you will crack under the pressure, and some of you will be asked to _leave_. This is your starting line. This is your arena. How well you play, that's up to you."

The whole room applauded in cue, but all the interns have their hearts beating in anticipation, fear, and excitement. When the noise finally died down, the Chief stepped aside and resume speaking. "We are also welcoming the new head of plastic surgery today. Dr. Mark Grey..." He gestured to Mark who flashed his irresistible smirk and the girls, even a couple of men, in the auditorium whispered about how hot he is, making Meredith's eyes roll in annoyance.

George's eyes widen in horror at the mention of his last name and Meredith's reaction to the gushing. _Is she married?!_ "A-Are you and him...?" He asked and Meredith turned to look at him. "Is-Is he your _husband_?" He whispered. She laughed quietly which made George feel a little stupid but hell, he wanted to know. But, _god damn_! She's so freaking beautiful.

"That would've been really weird. And disgusting." Meredith said, barely recovering from what George has said. "He's my brother."

The only thing George said was, "Oh." Okay, that was stupid, not to mention humiliating, on various sorts. But it saved him from the anxiety and broken heart.

Shortly after the , they were sent to the intern locker room and were handed with their scrubs.

"Only six women out of twenty." Mer said softly from her place at the bench between the lockers, placing the stethoscope around her neck

Cristina shoved her boots in her locker and turned to Meredith. "Yeah, I heard one of them's a model. Seriously? That's gonna help with the respect thing?"

The blonde stood up and shrugged. "At least we both got the Nazi."

"You got the Nazi? So did I." George uttered aloud as he gingerly reached for his stethoscope inside his locker. "At least we'll be tortured together, right?"

"Uh huh." Cristina hummed challengingly, and walked away around and from Meredith.

Meredith nodded with an awkward smile. She didn't want to be impolite and grumpy on her first day, not yet anyway. Cristina's already being hostile. It's just fair that she keeps it a little balanced.

"O'Malley! Yang! Grey! Stevens! Karev!" The man who's been calling out names finally called theirs out.

"Bailey?" Cristina asked.

"End of the hall." He replied and turned back to his list.

Cristina slowed down and Meredith walked beside her, the Asian clearly taken aback by their view. "That's the Nazi?" She asked with doubt.

"I thought the Nazi would be a guy." George slipped in, staring at the object of their conversation.

"I thought the Nazi would be…_the Nazi._" Grey frowned, tucking her hands inside her lab pockets.

"Maybe it's professional jealousy." A tall blonde kept up behind them, a little out of breath. "Maybe she's brilliant and they call her 'the Nazi' because they're jealous. Maybe she's nice." In a few quick steps, she's ahead of them.

"Let me guess, you're Dr. Model." Cristina commented dryly which earned her a look from the tall blonde.

The five halted into a stop as they came face-to-face with their resident. And Dr. Model stepped forward, reaching her right hand out to Bailey and smiling widely at the black round woman scribbling on a chart. "Hi. I'm Isobel Stevens, but everyone calls me Izzie."

Looking at her from head to toe and back again, the Nazi declined the intern's friendly approach. "I have five rules," She looked at the other three standing before her, "memorize them. Rule number 1: Don't bother sucking up. I already hate you and that's not gonna change. Trauma protocol: phoneless. Pagers! Nurses will page you." She made a move to go after beckoning at the counter where 5 black pagers are placed. Cristina grabbed one of the pagers and the rest followed. "You answer every page at a run. A run. That's rule number two! Your first shift starts now and lasts 48 hours."

"Obviously, you're all wrong." A man who looks like a frat boy said quietly as they scurry behind their resident.

They turned at a left into the corridor where the snow-covered mountains are on full view through the glass wall. But they didn't have enough time to appreciate the scenery as they tried to keep up with their resident's pace. They proceeded to the elevators and went to the roof, a gurney in tow as the helicopter ambulance landed and the door immediately opened to reveal two paramedics and their patient seizing. "What do we got?"

"Katie Bryce, 15 year-old female with new on-set seizures. Been admitted in last week. IV lost in roof, started grandmal seizing as we descended." The paramedic yelled over the noise of the overhead blades of the helicopter.

"Okay, roll her on her side." Bailey instructed as soon as they were in a room. "Izzie, 10 milligrams of diazepam."

Izzie looked at her, lost with what to do.

"No, no, the white lid is on the right. Righty-whitey. Smoke over fire." She was ready to take over, but she decided to let her interns learn a little, giving them the benefit of the doubt. It's their first day, after all. What's that saying again? You'll sink a little before you'd know how to swim? "A large bore IV. Don't let the blood hemolyse, let's go!" She then directed to George.

Once all 10 milligrams was injected, the patient stopped seizing and they slowly rolled her to her back. A man in navy blue scrubs entered the room and Bailey handed him the chart, telling her something and then walking out of the room. "Shotgun. That means you run every test in the book, CT, CBC, Chem 7, tox screen. Cristina, you're on labs. George, get the patient on work up. Meredith, take Katie for a CT. She's _your_ responsibility now." Bailey handed Meredith the patient's chart and left the room with Stevens and Karev in tow.

"I hate you." Cristina scowled at Meredith who tried her best to hide the nervousness she feels in her stomach behind a self-assured smile as the last remark from her superior echoed in her head. But she's not someone who backs out. Meredith Grey never chickens out on a challenge.

* * *

><p>"You know Meredith is inbred?" A girl across Izzie whispered. Cristina sat back in her seat, anticipating the things they're going to say about Meredith's family. Oh, if only they had known. "Like<em> royally<em> inbred. Her mother's Ellis Grey."

"Shut up, _the _Ellis Grey?" Izzie said, her voice two notches down the previous.

"Who's Ellis Grey?" George blurted out which took all the attention of his colleagues.

"The Grey Method! Where did you go to med school? Mexico?" Cristina butted in, too surprised that George doesn't know about Ellis Grey. "She's one of the first big-chick surgeons."

"She won the Harper Avery. _Twice._" Izzie said, dozing off from her laughter. "I'd kill to have Ellis Grey as my mother."

"I'd kill to be Ellis Grey." Sure, Cristina is on Mer's side, but you couldn't blame her. She's a surgical whore, and Ellis Grey is practically _a god_. And no one would really wish to have Ellis Grey as a mother. Stevens obviously doesn't know what she's talking about. "All I need is one good case."

"And Meredith's brother is the new hotshot head of plastics: _Mark Grey_. Talk about pressure." Izzie added, leaning back in her seat.

* * *

><p>In med school, they teach you how to do first aid procedures, resuscitate, suture, cut, identify, close. But one thing they didn't teach you is how to deal with the patient's family. And nobody prepared Meredith for overly worried parents. So when Katie's parents had a gazillion questions about their daughter, she told them she need to get her superior which she's trying to look for now. Opening the door at the end of the hall, she almost ran into Bailey who grumpily spat at her, "What?"<p>

"Katie's parents have questions. Do you talk to them or do I ask Burke?" Meredith said.

"No, Burke's off the case," She shrugged and looked over her shoulders, "Katie belongs to the new attending, Dr. Shepherd. He's over there."

Meredith followed the direction Bailey pointed at and saw what she was so not expecting to see; white and red competing to creep up on her face, and white is so damn winning. She backed out and went inside the halls again, running towards the stairwell. But it was too late, for the man had seen her and is now making his way towards her. _Fast._


	3. Chapter 3: I'll Be Damned

**A/N:** Short update! More like a filler chapter, anyway. Less MerDer but more sibling stuff. Again, all grammar and spelling mistakes are solely on me, unfortunately. Feedback of any sort would be highly appreciated (NO, REALLY, REVIEWS WILL BE HIGHLY GLORIFIED). Constructive criticisms are appreciated too, as long as they're not rude.

**Disclaimer:** Chill, mate. I ain't claiming any of ABC's crap.

* * *

><p><strong>*****FLASHBACK*****<strong>

It was the last day of med school and Mark skipped to a jog as he tried to keep his pace up with Derek. "Derek!" He called over his bestfriend. "Man, slow down." He said, crouched down, panting as he came to a stop when Derek turned around.

"You need to work out more." Derek hit Mark's arm lightly with his free hand.

"I do work out! Almost every night!" Mark smirked.

"Not that kind of workout." He snorted. _Typical Mark reaction._

"Anyway, my sister's coming this afternoon. You wanna join us for dinner?"

In the four years they've been friends, Derek has never once seen Mark's little sister every time she visits town. Nor has he any idea how she looks now because the only photos of her on frame in Mark's bedroom are when she was about 8 and one taken from a photobooth when Mark came home for her high school graduation, shielding her face while trying to fight off a very playful Mark. "It's Ma's birthday today and everyone will be over for dinner. The sisters will eat me alive if I don't go, considering I haven't attended the last one."

"Mrs. Shepherd. Right! I forgot." Mark tilted his head a bit back and stared at the open sky, a thing he does when he's trying to think or when he's reminded about something that almost slipped his mind. "Shame. Maybe next time, then. Tell her, happy birthday for me, okay?" He turned to Derek and tapped his shoulder firmly, an honest smile playing on his lips.

"Yeah. Have a great vacation!" He told him when he started to turn away.

Mark looked back over his shoulder and yelled, "You too!"

Only when Derek started to turn around himself, had he remembered to ask Mark to go with him instead, seeing Mark's practically raised by Carolyn Shepherd too. So he jogged up to him and called his name out, "Grey!" Mark turned around. "Why don't you and your sister join us, instead? Mom will be delighted. You're like a son to her, anyway."

Mark smiled at the thought. To him, Carolyn is everything that Ellis had never been; the exact image of what he wants their mother to be: loving, gentle, polite, rational, and most especially, a good cook. But having another family she doesn't know, Meredith will freak out. She just doesn't do family gatherings. It's like her pet peeve or something. "Thanks, man, I'd love to, but we can't. Meredith will freak. She doesn't do family..." Mark trailed, hands gesturing, face apologetic.

*******END OF FLASHBACK*******

* * *

><p>"Hey. Hey, can I talk to you for a second?" He caught up with her, almost short of breath, a big smile on his face.<p>

"Actually I was—" But all attempts at trying to escape him were put to waste as he cornered her in the stairwell. "Dr. Shepherd," she began, looking anxiously left and right at the staircases below, checking it for unwanted listeners.

"Dr. Shepherd? That morning it was Derek." He began, standing in front of her, which miraculously steadied her too.

She looked intently at his baby blues. "Dr. Shepherd, it _never_ happened."

"What never happened; you sleeping with me the other night or you throwing me out the next morning? Because both are fun memories I'd like to hold on to." His one hand is gripping on the railing while the other one holds a chart.

"No! There will be no memories." She shook her head as he step a little towards her. "This _can't_ exist. You get that, right?"

He nodded, lips thinning into a line now. "You took advantage of me and now you wanna forget about it."

"I did not take adva—"

"I was strong, vulnerable and good-looking, and you took advantage."

_He's too proud, alright._ "Okay, I was the one who's drunk and you are not that good looking." She smiled, but not the sweet smile, the kind of flirty smile smug people receive from her, her eyes sparkling too.

"Maybe not today. The other night. That night, I sure was good-looking. I had my red shirt on, my good-looking shirt, and you took advantage." He rounded on her.

Meredith sighed in exasperation. "I _did not_ take advantage."

There was a moment of silence as his gaze travel from her eyes to her lips and down to her breasts. Something in her lab coat caught Derek's attention and as he was trying to read the embroidery, she waved a hand in front of his face.

"Dr. Shepherd!" Meredith spat. "My face is up here!"

He smiled at her, tilting his head to the side. "Take advantage again. Say… Friday night."

Lost in his eyes, she weighed the offer for a moment. She sure was a rebel when she was a teenager, probably still is and just has yet taken the theory into practice, but she's not the one to break the big rules. And probably bring more damage to this guy's crooked nose. "I… No. You're from Manhattan." She said so suddenly.

The only thing missing from Derek's reaction was a gasp, given the state of his eyebrows and dropped jaw. "What's being a New Yorker gotta do with you going out with me?" He asked in disbelief.

Her eyeballs would've rolled higher than the Space Needle if it wasn't inside her skull. She sighed, loudly, impatiently. "This _can't_ exist."

"Well, Dr…" He was on the verge of lecturing her about racism when he trailed, realizing he still hasn't known her name.

She cleared her throat, "Grey."

_No no no no no no no._ He chanted in his brain._ No, shit._ Wanting re-assurance, he asked her again. "I'm sorry?"

"I'm _Dr. Meredith Grey_." She asked, stressing her name slowly, trying to get the information through his skull.

Putting two and two together, Derek's eyes narrowed. Slowly running a hand on his face, he whispered, "I'll be damned."

* * *

><p>Mark arrived in his new office and a gold shiny desk name plate was placed on top of a box placed on his desk. He smiled at the plate as he walked closer to it and found a note folded under it.<p>

_I would've given you flowers but they should be for me instead._

Smiling brightly, he would recognise that penmanship everywhere, anytime. He picked up the plate and examined it, running his thumb over his engraved name.

Marcus Everett Grey, M.D., F.A.C.S.

Chief of Plastic Surgery

"Do you like it?" Said the woman leaning on the doorway with a hand on her hip. Wearing a black pencil skirt and a maroon button up shirt under her coat, she straightened up and started walking towards Mark.

He met her halfway, his hand automatically encircling around her waist as he dove down for a quick kiss. "I missed you."

Grinning saucily, she trailed her index finger from the side of his mid thigh up to his cheek, tapping it lightly. "I missed you too." Leaning a bit forward, her perfectly-lined red lips hovering over his ear, "How about we show each other tonight just how much we do?" She whispered, before blowing air into his ear.

Mark stiffened in front of her, his skin suddenly warmer. "Damn, woman. If you don't stop that," He warned, pulling her to him as he looked down to her eyes, "I might not be able to do my job all day."

"So do you like it?" She asked giggling as she wiggled out of his embrace and succeeding.

"Very much. Thank you." He said gratefully as he put down the name plate on his desk. Taking a deep breath, he asked hopefully, "Would you go to dinner with Mer and I? I told her I'd introduce her to you."

The redhead dropped down on the leather couch at the other end of the room and smiled at him, "Of course. I'd love to." If she was to be honest, she's really quite nervous about meeting his sister. Because if there was anyone he loves more anything else—yes, more than his girlfriend—it would be Meredith, his little sister.

* * *

><p><strong>*****FLASHBACK*****<strong>

Mark had just finished his intern exams that day and tonight, he would have a party, exclusively for interns, and well, hot nurses and maybe some people down from radiology too, okay _a lot_, but mostly for interns. He has already sent texts, inviting people to celebrate at his and Derek's apartment. But first, he needs to call his sister. Speed-dialing her, he walked over to the small window in the lounge room overlooking the city.

"Yeah?" A raspy, sleepy voice said on the other line.

Mark smiled. She's so gonna throw a fit, but it's not like he cares or anything. He missed her. "How's my favorite sister?" He said in almost a yell.

"God!" She muttered, obviously annoyed with his gesture. "When are you gonna stop doing that?!"

"When are you gonna stop getting that I never will?" He asked smirking.

She groaned in protest. Hey, it's not like she can do anything about it, anyway. "I'm your _only_ sister. You have no other choice. We're stuck with each other."

He laughed loud, making Meredith cringe on the other end of the line. "That's what they tell us anyway!"

"God, can we not talk about that." She sighed, and the ruffling of sheets can be heard in the background as she rolled on her back. "What's up?"

"I'm done with my intern exams." He sing-sung cheerfully.

"And?" She asked. There's just always more to Mark.

"And I'm having a party at my apartment." He confessed.

"Just keep the vases and anything that could be broken! You wouldn't want a repeat of what happened before your high school graduation!" She reminded. God, that day was horrible. They were both moving around the house like lightning, cleaning up the horrible mess the party the night before left them with, before their mother arrived from a conference in New York that morning.

*******END OF FLASHBACK*******


	4. Chapter 4: Who Are You Talking About?

**A/N:** Sorry, it took me so long! Finals came and being in college requires a lot of time not sleeping and lesser time doing random shenanigans, then I had to catch up with my sleep. But I'm back now, until June, I hope, for weekly updates.

**A/N:** All grammar and spelling mistakes are solely on me, unfortunately. Feedback of any sort would be highly appreciated (NO, REALLY, REVIEWS WILL BE HIGHLY GLORIFIED). Constructive criticisms are appreciated too, as long as they're not rude.

**Disclaimer:** Chill, mate. I ain't claiming any of ABC's things.

* * *

><p>"Oh, God. He can't know about this. He can't." Meredith started rambling and Derek seemed like he didn't hear a word as he tried to digest the information that had just exploded in front of them.<p>

"Meredith."

"What?!" She spat at him, for the second time today.

"Calm down."

"Seriously? _Seriously?_" Struck with complete shock and disbelief, the memories of her brother's over protectiveness flood her. "You might have known Mark as a friend but he's a whole lot different person when it comes to me."

A memory suddenly flashed inside his head. "Oh, I think I do." He gulped.

* * *

><p><strong>*****FLASHBACK*****<strong>

"Mark?" Derek tried to yell out over the thumping music inside his and Mark's apartment. His shift was just over and all he wants is rest and he would come home to this—a party with what seems like half of the junior staff of the hospital?

But the music suddenly stopped and all he heard were footsteps and grunts and the sound of something hard meeting with skin. _Like fist colliding with skin over and over again_. Goddammit.

Derek hurriedly pushed past the commotion of people forming inside his room. "Excuse me!" He yelled and finally finding a red-angry Mark decking a guy, who looks like their fellow intern David, straddling his abdomen while alternately punching him in the face with both his bleeding fists, David trying to speak in the almost non-existent gaps between each punch. Derek finally snapped out of his shock and moved towards the pair and tried to yell his bestfriend back into consciousness. "Mark! Mark!"

Mark stopped his fist midair and stared deadly into the eyes of the man under him. "Don't you dare speak of my sister again. You're not worthy of even thinking about her." He dropped a punch in a flex of his hand, seemingly towards David, only to make his fist hit the floor an inch away from the culprit's face and stood up swiftly, grabbed the picture from a broken frame on the floor, and walked out of the room.

So that was it. That was what made Mark act like he's crazy. If there's anything he loves in the world more than any other thing, it would be his sister. Speaking about her in a disrespectful manner is like begging for a beat up.

"Party's over!" Derek announced, pretending not to care about their colleague bleeding on the floor and barely able to stand up even with the help of their other colleagues.

When all the people are gone, Derek looked for Mark and found him in the rooftop, gulping down beer in bottles. "Hey," he said, stepping in beside him, but didn't get any response as the taller man kept his gaze at the city before him. "You okay?"

"My sister." Mark replied hoarsely.

Derek turned to him, "Is she okay?"

"Yeah. It's just... He disrespected her."

"After tonight, I don't think anyone would, _ever again_." He said conclusively.

"Hope so." Mark smiled weakly. He certainly hopes so.

*******END OF FLASHBACK*******

* * *

><p>"Something happened in New York when we were interns." Derek said, dumbfounded still at the newly-learned information and all the memories related to it. "He almost killed the guy because he made a snarky comment on a graduation <em>photo<em> of you!"

"Okay." Meredith said decidedly, "We're not going to tell him. So whatever happened the other night, we're gonna forget about it and we're all just gonna coexist peacefully."

Derek was about to protest when a nurse went through the door of the stairwell. "_Dr. Grey_."

"_Dr. Shepherd_, the patient's parents are waiting for you."

* * *

><p><em>meet me at the basement. am freakn out <em>Meredith typed quickly on her phone and flipped it shut as she rummaged her way out of the surgical floor and into the stairwell, trying to escape being trapped in the elevator with her new neurosurgical attending slash most recent one-night stand.

_dis bettr b juicy cus I am beyond bored ryt now_ Cristina texted back and made her own way downstairs. But not before being called aloud by who else than her bestfriend's brother and their boss, Mark. She wasn't really that close to him except for times when they need to talk or discuss about Mer and Mer's situation or just how she's been. He's been checking up on his sister through Cristina when Mer's phone is unreachable or when she simply does not answer. Except for the frequent introductions, they haven't really talked about anything else except Meredith. Not that there's anything to talk about with him except her, really. "Yeah?" Cris answered as she turned around and started walking towards Mark. And jackpot! Who's the red bimbo beside him?

"Is Mer around? I haven't really seen him all day yet." He asked, keeping an arm around his companion.

Cristina eyed the redhead from head to toe and back again. _Is this what the freaking out is about?_ "Mmm, no, not really. She's in hiding. Something about freaking out and needing me to freak out to. Either it has something to do with you," she narrowed her eyes on the two in front of her, "or it's something that only people with vaginas understand. Either way, I'm not telling you where she is."

Mark stood stiffly at his spot, his arm rigid around Addison. _Damn! Did Mer seriously find out already? I knew I can't keep it that long from her. But this soon? Really?!_ "Okay, can you, ugh… Can you not tell her about this? I'm still figuring out how to tell her about Addison and I, and I really don't know how."

Cristina looked at the woman who has been staring at them intently, "Yeah, whatever." She waved a hand at them and walked away.

"Uh… Thank you?" Mark yelled after the intern.

"That's Cristina?" Addison asked as they proceeded to walk on the hallway and towards the Chief's office. "She doesn't seem like she's as bitchy as your stories."

"Oh, I hope you don't ever get to talk to her when she's having a bad day. She'll make you cry so much, you'd want to pee in your pants." He whispered as he opened the door for her and waited for her to step in before doing so himself.

The Chief was facing the wall and talking on the phone. He was obviously in argument with whoever was on the other end. "I'm just saying that you should give them the benefit of the doubt! They're—" He swiveled his chair and saw the couple in front of him. "I will have to call you back." With that, he hung up.

"Little Addie?!" He walked forward with a shocked smile.

Growing up as the daughter of The Captain, who is one of the best neurologists in the world, she got to know a lot of people from all medical fields. Richard Webber has been a close friend of his dad for since she could remember. "Uncle Richard." Addison greeted and went in for a hug and a peck on his cheek.

"The last time I saw you, you were, what, 16?" He sighed after releasing each other.

Addison laughed. "And the last time I saw you, you don't have these many wrinkles!"

The Chief look behind Addison and Mark politely stepped forward, offering his right hand for a shake.

"Mark."

"Good to see you, Chief." He grinned and stood beside his girlfriend.

"Sit down." Gesturing at the seats in front of him, he walked behind his desk to sit at his black leather chair. "So, how's the hospital looking for you?"

"It's really great." Addison commented with wide eyes. "I've been to the NICU."

* * *

><p>Cristina slumped down on the gurney beside Meredith and huffed. "This is not what I pictured my first day to be. They don't allow us anywhere near any bloody bloody guts. All we do are run labs, work orders… Hell, they don't even allow us to stitch patients in the ER without supervision!" She huffed, annoyed, but looked at Meredith when she didn't get the usual response from her. "Cat got your tongue? What's wrong with you?"<p>

"I just found out something I never would've wanted to happen." Meredith stared blankly at the wall.

Cristina's mouth, opened slightly agape. _Of course she knows already. This hospital's a gossip place._ She stood up in front of her and walked towards the vending machine to get some chips. "It's not like you're not his favorite girl anymore or whatever. He just wants to have some fun." With one hand on her hip, waiting for the bag of chips to drop, she added. "Perhaps, him becoming a reformed man, I wonder how long that would last."

Mer's head snapped into her bestfriend's direction with a confused look on her face. "Who are you talking about?"

Picking up the chips, Cristina arose with the same confused look on her face. "Who are you talking about?"

"My one night stand. Are you talking about Mark and his girlfriend?"

"Uhhh… Yeah." Cristina trailed, opening the bag of chips and stuffing a mouthful in her mouth. _Oops_.

"You met her? She's here?" Meredith fired sequentially. When Cristina nodded, Mer's head flew back in frustration. "This is all too much for one day." She groaned. "I haven't even met her, I don't even know her name."

The Asian sat down beside Mer again. "She looks bitchy."

"Bitchier than us?"

"Yeah."

"Wow."

Cristina steered the conversation back to Mer. "Who were you talking about, anyway?"

The blonde's eyes narrowed into thin slits and bowed down, then looked at the brunette under her lashes. "I slept with our boss." She whispered.

"YOU WHAT?!" Cristina all but screamed.


End file.
